Feds, working without pay, help Oakland PD seize guns,...

1of18FILE-- On Thursday, she announced a gun trafficking operation by city and federal law enforcement officials that included the seizure of more than four dozen guns.Photo: Sam Wolson / Special to the Chronicle

2of18FILE-- Oakland and federal law enforcement officials confiscated more than four dozen firearms in a major gun and narcotics trafficking investigation that culminated Thursday in several arrests, police said.Photo: Bloomberg photo by Al Drago

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4of18Background checks
California law requires background checks for all gun purchases, and requires sales at gun shows, and by other non-commercial vendors, to be referred to a licensed dealer, who can charge a processing fee. The buyer must present proof of identity and age, such as a driver’s license. As of July 2019, California will require background checks for purchases of ammunition. The state currently requires online purchasers of ammunition to receive the ammunition from a licensed dealer, who can charge a processing fee.Photo: Damian Dovarganes, Associated Press

5of18Federal law requires background checks only for gun purchases from licensed commercial dealers, and not for purchases at gun shows or other transactions between private parties in the same state. Federal law requires online purchasers of firearms to use licensed dealers and undergo background checks. No background checks are needed for ammunition.Photo: John Locher, AP

6of18Waiting period California law requires a 10-day wait between an order and delivery.Photo: George Frey, Getty Images

7of18Federal law has no waiting-period mandate.Photo: Mike Balsamo, Associated Press

8of18Purchase limits California allows a maximum of one handgun purchase every 30 days. There are no state limits on the purchase of rifles or shotguns.Photo: JOE BUGLEWICZ, NYT

9of18Assault weapons California law bans the sale of guns defined by state law as assault weapons. The law, first passed in 1989, bans the sale of dozens of specific semiautomatic and automatic models, and in an effort to stop gun makers from circumventing the law, legislators prohibited certain characteristics of weapons as well. Rifles with detachable magazines, which enable swift reloading, can’t have any of a number of features that give them added functions or make them easier to handle, such as forward grips, folding stocks or flash suppressors. Possession of assault weapons that were bought before the state ban is legal, as long as the gun is registered. The sale of high-capacity ammunition magazines that carry more than 10 rounds is also banned, but a 2016 law banning possession of those magazines has been blocked by a federal judge.Photo: Rich Pedroncelli, Associated Press

10of18Federal law has no such bans.Photo: George Frey, Getty Images

11of18Automatic weapons
California law prohibits machine guns and “bump stocks,” which can be used to give semiautomatic weapons the rapid-fire capacity of machine guns.Photo: Rick Bowmer, Associated Press

12of18Federal law bans machine guns but not bump stocks.Photo: ERIC GAY, New York Times

13of18Carrying concealed weapons in public California requires a permit from a local law enforcement agency to carry a concealed handgun. Applicants must have completed a training course, be adults of “good moral character” and have “good cause” to carry a gun, such as a need for self-defense. These permits are generally denied in urban areas, except to law enforcement and security guards, but are allowed in other areas of the state.Photo: Al Behrman / Associated Press

14of18Federal law has no restrictions.Photo: Michael Macor / The Chronicle

15of18Restraining orders California law allows close relatives or police can ask a judge to confiscate firearms and ammunition from those who pose a danger to themselves or others, based on threats, mental instability, domestic violence, drug or alcohol abuse or other threatening conduct. A restraining order stays in effect until a court hearing, generally about 21 days, can be extended by a judge for a year and can be renewed if necessary.Photo: John Carl D'Annibale

16of18Federal law has no such provision.Photo: Michael Macor /The Chronicle

17of18Chief Anne Kirkpatrick speaks to reporters about the seizure of more than four dozen guns through a joint operation with federal law enforcement agencies, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and the Drug Enforcement Administration, at the Oakland Police Department headquarters in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, January 10, 2019.Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

18of18Chief Anne Kirkpatrick speaks to reporters about the seizure of more than four dozen guns through a joint operation with federal law enforcement agencies, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and the Drug Enforcement Administration, at the Oakland Police Department headquarters in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, January 10, 2019.Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

Oakland and federal law enforcement officials confiscated more than four dozen firearms in a major gun and narcotics trafficking investigation that culminated Thursday in several arrests, police said.

Some of the seized guns have already been linked to shootings and homicides in Oakland, Anne Kirkpatrick, chief of the Oakland Police Department, said at a news conference. Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives began the investigation more than a year ago, but they could not join the news conference because of the partial government shutdown, Kirkpatrick said.

Despite working without pay, officers with the ATF and Drug Enforcement Administration were on the team that served search and arrest warrants Thursday morning, police said. Those taken into custody — Oakland officials wouldn’t say how many — were being interviewed by the afternoon. They are expected to face criminal charges in federal court.

“This morning’s very large operation is not done,” Kirkpatrick said. “We are focused on firearms and narcotics trafficking, such as the suppliers and sales, which includes fully automatic, high-powered rifles and high-capacity magazines.”

The seized guns were linked to fatal shootings in Oakland using the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, Kirkpatrick said. The operation is ongoing, and officials are seeking to arrest additional suspects.

“If you are in possession of an illegal firearm, be concerned,” Kirkpatrick said. “We are not done.”

The operation came after a violent start to the year. Weekend shootings in East and West Oakland — including a triple shooting — killed six people. Yet city officials recorded fewer homicides in 2018 than they had in nearly two decades, and the four-year homicide average dropped to the lowest level since record-keeping began in 1985.

Elected city officials in Oakland have forbidden the police force from working with federal officials in Homeland Security Investigations, the criminal arm of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. But the City Council last month authorized other local-federal partnerships, including with the ATF and DEA. The agreements allow Oakland police officers to work in federal task forces and ensure the federal government reimburses the city for their time.

Kimberly Veklerov covers Oakland and the greater East Bay for The San Francisco Chronicle. She joined The Chronicle in 2015 after graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in economics. Previously, she served as the editor in chief and president of the Daily Californian, Berkeley’s student newspaper.